How to create 'Jeep stick shift' shape?
Create a plane in edit mode.

 

Then, scale it along the y axis until it is slightly longer than it is wide. Exit edit mode with TAB and then press CTRL + 2 to add a subsurf modifier. Adjust length and width with the scale commands until it looks like the base of the "pyramid". Add edge loops by pressing CTRL + R and sliding to make the sides flatter. Scale the two end edges to make it rounder. See the first picture for the end result. Then, press I to inset faces into the shape. Use extrude (e) and scale (s) to build up the shape. Remember, you can use e+s to extrude the shape outwards. My example isn't awesome, but I also didn't pay a whole lot of attention to proportions. You could easily do better than me! :)